He war cinema it is a genre in itself, a variant sufficiently distant from action cinema, historical portraiture and drama, as to give shape to certain conventions that define the space in which a war film usually moves. A nickname that already tastes old, reminiscent of public television programming and, surely, of the father or grandfather on duty who, in the eighties/nineties, smiled when they announced 12 del Pátíbulo. Some of the children of that time (like yours truly) embraced genres such as science fiction, in which the translation of the war used to be accompanied by themes and forms that moved away from the purity of the genre. War, in the future (or dystopia), as well as its possible causes, events, and consequences, is a subject as interesting as it is mistreated. An approach that is usually abandoned to the bombastic, ignoring aspects such as crudeness. Luckily there are many examples of films that take the discourses related to war to the field of science fiction, futuristic fantasy or dystopiasto generate interesting proposals, play with shapes or simply entertain the staff (which is not an easy job).
For this reason, today, we are going to review 9 Of The Most Iconic Futuristic War Movies Of All Time. 9 works that, in one way or another, introduce war into the center of their discourse and justify, through this, their reason for being. Go for it.
- at the edge of tomorrow
- war for the planet of the apes
- Terminator 2
- Matrix Revolutions
- Dune
- War of the Worlds
- Starship Troopers
- Aliens
- Independence Day
at the edge of tomorrow
Doug Liman gave us in 2014 this adaptation of the manga by Hiroshi Sakurazakawith Tom Cruise leading the cast, accompanied by Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton and Jonas Armstrong. An interesting exercise, well executed and full of rhythm, which looks towards the complex narrative to structure its plot from a really competent script. One of the best films that the American actor has left us during this last, and prolific, decade. His spectacular exoskeletons, weighing between forty and sixty kilos, give the film a visual packaging that is only surpassed by his well-worked turns.
war for the planet of the apes
Matt Rives It closes one of the most underrated modern trilogies with an impeccable film in terms of billing, which does not renounce drama and embrace its own political discourse despite its obvious commercial aspirations. Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn, Amiah Milles and Terry Notary complete an ensemble cast completely devoted to a perfect closure for this universe so recognizable who has ended up building the latest reinterpretation of Planet of the Apes.
Terminator 2
Here, in reality, we are not facing a war movie, but the war conflict is at the center of the equation at all times. In fact, it is the engine of a plot that is justified by the necessary survival of the resistance leader. A young John Connor played by Edward Furlong, and well accompanied by Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Robert Patrick. With all of them, James Cameron signs one of his best films, an action film that sweeps the viewer like a freight trainand with which both the director and ILM achieved such a solid technical invoice for its premiere year (1991), which continues to function today.
Matrix Revolutions
And we continue with another closing of the trilogy, this time signed by the Wachowski sisters. Despite the fact that the main arc of Matrix Revolutions Follow the journey of Neo and company, the reason for it, and the rest of the subplots, are directly related to the war against the machines. A war that this time takes the form of the desperate defense of Zion, delivering scenes that many of us stayed in the memory. Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carri-Anne Moss and Hugo Weaving lead the cast of a film that looked directly at anime when Japanese animation did not have, by far, the strength it has today.
Dune
The film that Denis Villeneuve always wanted to make, a new look at the Dune universe which is decidedly far from what David Lynch himself proposed to us in 1984. The epic of Arrakis tells us about the confrontation between the Harkonnen family and the Atreides house for control of the extremely valuable spice. An overwhelming visual exercise, with a superb rhythm, which is not afraid to slow down the gaze in these times when overexcitement rules big productions. Timothée Chalamet, Rebeca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Zendaya, Javier Bardem and a great Stellan Skarsgard complete a luxury cast for one of the best movies of 2021.
War of the Worlds
Here we do not have much of the future, although it cannot be denied that the genesis of the original work started from a look at what was to come, at how the human being should begin to relate to everything that is beyond our planet. . A fantastic excuse to build a story about supremacy and colonialism that Byron Haskin led to the cinema in 1953 with a film that was awarded the Oscar for best special effects. A great sci-fi movie that turns out to be just as terrifying as Wells’ original noveland that as an adaptation of it, it works better than the 2005 version signed by Steven Spielberg.
Starship Troopers
One of the best movie buff examples of what we can understand as future war and, in turn, a wonderful satire of the most disgusting warmongering and the most vacuous nationalism. A movie in which Paul Verhoeven hides, behind his gore and his action sequences, a tremendously interesting speech and not lacking in humor. Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Denise Richards, Clancy Brown, Jake Busey, Dean Norris, Neil Patrick Harris and the incombustible Michael Ironside complete a fairly choral cast, with characters as stereotyped as they are iconic. A delicious past of the bagel, which embraces the most vacuous sensationalism to look the viewer in the face and invite them to reflect, if they feel like it, when the credits roll. Before that, it’s about killing bugs.
Aliens
We go back to J.ames Cameron and its sequel to Alien, which decidedly turned to action by putting in charge of the plot a squad of Space Marines led by Ripley, who was rescued after wandering in space for several years. A film in which the military faces a nature as unknown and horrible as that of the aliens, raising the tension with each passing minute and building a story that always goes further. James Cameron achieved what seemed impossible, and it is nothing more than to deliver a sequel that would not pale before the original work signed by Ridley Scott. He not only achieved it, but also established a series of clichés around the space marine that are still valid today.
Independence Day
Roland Emmerich gave us, in 1996, one of those summer movies that ended up turned into generational tapes. With a Will Smith who was on the crest of the wave, accompanied by Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Mary McDonnell and Judd Hirch, Independence Day presented us with an alien invasion that posed a desperate war in which humanity was risking its own survival. A film that bequeathed iconic images, while putting on screen one of the best interpretations that have been made in the cinema of the flying saucer concept.
If you want more movie recommendations, here is our review of the best World War I movies and the best World War II movies.
